Many piping systems, such as those utilized in steam plants, may be beneficially supported by variable spring supports which enable piping to be supported while permitting position variations thereof such as caused by thermal differences. In the installation of such piping systems, it is important to be able to accurately determine the actual height from some known reference point at which, any piping segment, will be supported so that it may be interconnected in such installation with other piping segments, also supported at such heights. Inasmuch as installation is of unloaded pipes, it is common to place the spring member of such variable spring supports under a predetermined load which will closely approximate the weight of such piping segments under actual use conditions and accordingly enable that piping segment in conjunction with its support to assume that height it would be supported at under loaded condition, while being installed in an unloaded condition. To accomplish this, it is known to place spacers between the spring plate and the top end plate of such supports so as to place a predetermined minimum compression upon the spring and maintain such spacer elements in position by means of bolts passing through the upper end plate and threadably engaged with the spring plate.
After piping installation and testing, it is often desirable to remove such spacers which is normally accomplished by removing the bolt longitudinally through the upper end plate after unscrewing the bolt from the spring plate and then laterally displacing the spacers through the side slots of the casing; both such steps being performed when the hanger is in loaded condition, that is; when the spacer is not firmly wedged between the top end plate and the spring plate, whereby it may be easily removed from therebetween. The longitudinal removal of such spacer retaining bolts is, however, often difficult in close quarters and is sometimes not possible, as when the hanger is installed close under supporting steel or equipment. It would accordingly be desirable to provide stop mechanisms for the above described type supports with the ability to be removed from their casings in close quarters without the necessity of completely removing the retaining bolts through the top plate thereof.
With such type supports it is also often a problem to locate the component parts of the stop mechanisms thereof, once removed therefrom. It would accordingly also be desirable to provide means within the support itself wherein such stop mechanisms may be stored, when not utilized to place a predetermined compression load upon the spring thereof.